Natchitoches National Fish Hatchery

08/11/2026

🚨 Tortoise Release Update 🚨

🐢 staff recently traveled to the DeSoto National Forest in southern Mississippi to release 33 juvenile Gopher Tortoises! These tortoises were collected as eggs from the same area in 2024 and have spent the past two years at the hatchery where they can grow quickly and are protected from predators. All 33 received a tag with 10 of them receiving a special acoustic transmitter that allows biologists to track those tortoises individually and gather valuable information such as survival and movement. We are extremely grateful for our partners on this project including The US Forest Service, Mississippi Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and the Mississippi Ecological Services field office for all their support and making this release go smoothly!

07/27/2026

🚨 Fish Stocking Update 🚨

🎣 Natchitoches National Fish Hatchery recently released ~16,000 Channel Catfish (3.0 inches long) into Flag Lake on Barksdale Air Force Base. These supplemental stockings are designed to enhance recreational fishing opportunities for our veterans, active duty military members, and their families! These catfish might be small now but they’ll grow quickly and support fishing opportunities for years! And who knows? One of them might turn into someone’s “big catch!” 🐟

07/15/2026

Check out this post from Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries! Six lakes in the top 25! In partnership with the department, we help stock all of these lakes and are excited to see the results of years of hard work! 🐟 🎣

🏆🎣𝘉𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘮𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 magazine has released its 𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝟭𝟬𝟬 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗟𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲, and 𝗟𝗼𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗮’𝘀 𝗯𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗳𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝗺𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻!

🌟 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗟𝗮𝗸𝗲 landed at 𝗡𝗼. 𝟭𝟬 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘄𝗶𝗱𝗲 among the best bass lakes in the country! See the full list here: https://buff.ly/ovJ13Se

Even more exciting, 𝘀𝗶𝘅 𝗟𝗼𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗮 𝗹𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 were recognized among the 𝗧𝗼𝗽 𝟮𝟱 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗖𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗨.𝗦.:
🎣 Caney Lake (No. 4)
🎣 Bussey Brake (No. 5)
🎣 Toledo Bend Reservoir (No. 6)
🎣 Black Bayou Lake (Hosston), Louisiana (No. 10)
🎣 Lake D’Arbonne (No. 18)
🎣 Lake Claiborne (No. 21)

See the full list here: https://buff.ly/ZzckMPR

These rankings reflect the outstanding fisheries found across the state and highlight the value of long-term fisheries management, stocking programs, and hard work by the LDWF Inland Fisheries team. A key factor in the rankings was data from the Louisiana Annual Tournament Report Information Project (LATRIP), which Bassmaster magazine used as part of its evaluation process. 🔗https://buff.ly/u6zzSs5

🎣Ready to see what you can catch in Louisiana’s top-rated waterbodies? 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗯 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗴𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗽 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗵𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗽𝗼𝘁𝘀 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂!️ 🗺️ https://buff.ly/uzac6rG

Thanks to our dedicated fisheries biologists, staff, and partners whose hard work helps make Louisiana one of the nation's premier bass fishing destinations!

07/04/2026

Happy 4th of July from our staff (and Miss Piggy) here at Natchitoches National Fish Hatchery! 🇺🇸🐢🎆

We hope your day is filled with sunshine, good food, and plenty of reasons to celebrate. Have a safe and happy Independence Day! ❤️🤍💙

07/02/2026

🚨 Fish Stocking Update 🚨

Our staff has been busy raising, counting, and stocking Channel Catfish. In partnership with the US Forest Service, we recently released 58,000 channel catfish into Lake Okhissa near Natchez, MS! These fingerlings are part of our ongoing mission to enhance recreational fishing.

📕 Did you know?
Supplemental stocking helps maintain healthy catfish populations in areas where natural reproduction might need a helping hand.

By ensuring our lakes remain places where people can continue to catch fish, we are supporting local economies, jobs, and the timeless tradition of “just one more cast”.

Photo caption:
Juvenile channel catfish in a net (Credit: USFWS)

06/11/2026

🎨Our community gopher tortoise mosaic is now on display at the aquarium!

🖌️This mural was created by the local community to celebrate National Gopher Tortoise Day on April 10th, 2026. Each individual "scute" (the hexagonal plates that make up a tortoise's shell) was decorated by children from a local daycare and visitors to the aquarium.

🐢Just as a real tortoise shell is made of many parts that grow together to protect the animal, this mural represents the many individuals who come together to protect our local wildlife.

If you colored a scute, your artwork is now a permanent part of this display!

Stop by the aquarium to see the display in person! We are open Monday - Sunday 8:00-3:00 and closed on federal holidays.

05/20/2026

Congratulations to one of our volunteers who finished FOURTH in the NATION in the women’s 1X rowing event! Sophia was one of our best volunteers and now she is one of the best in the nation at rowing!

History made for NSU Rowing. 🚣‍♀️

Sophia Witman finished 4th in the nation in the Women’s 1x, the highest national finish for a women’s single in NSU Rowing history. After winning her heat by more than 50 seconds and missing first in her semifinal by just .03 seconds, Sophia earned her spot in the Grand Final and delivered a record-setting performance.

05/14/2026

🚨 Fish Stocking Update 🚨

🎣 Our staff has been busy raising, counting, and stocking Largemouth Bass. In partnership with Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, we released over 640,000 bass all across Louisiana! These fingerlings are part of our ongoing mission to enhance recreational fishing and, by working with LDWF, we’re making sure that Louisiana remains a “Sportsman’s Paradise” for generations of anglers.

📕 Did you know?
Supplemental stocking helps maintain healthy bass populations in areas where natural reproduction might need a helping hand

By ensuring our lakes remain places where people can continue to catch big bass, we are supporting local economies, jobs, and the timeless tradition of Louisiana Fishing

🛻 Where did these fish go?
These 640,000 fish were successfully released into:
Toledo Bend
Grand Bayou
Black Lake
Clear Lake
Sibley Lake
Kepler Creek Lake
Black Bayou Lake
Black Bayou Reservoir
Austin Lake
Harmon Lake

A huge shoutout goes to our dedicated, hardworking staff and partners at LDWF’s Booker Fowler Fish Hatchery for all the work that went into making this a successful largemouth bass year!

05/07/2026

🎣 A Surprise Guest Stopped By The Hatchery🐊

‼️ In partnership with Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, our crew has been busy harvesting largemouth bass in preparation for stocking into water bodies across Louisiana. Everything was going great - right up until we felt something heavy in the net. Imagine reaching for a net of largemouth bass and being met with an alligator looking back at you! 😳

📝 Lesson for the day

1. A 2-inch bass is ok. An alligator in the bass net is an effective “caffeine alternative!”

Don’t worry though, our toothy friend was safely relocated out of the net and the fish are officially on the move!

🚨 Stay tuned for upcoming stocking updates on where these bass were released!

04/10/2026

🐢Today we’re celebrating National Gopher Tortoise Day! At Natchitoches National Fish Hatchery, these animals are a big part of our conservation mission.

📌Did you know gopher tortoises are considered a keystone species? Their burrows provide shelter for more than 300 other animals, from frogs and snakes to small mammals and insects. When we help gopher tortoises, we’re helping an entire ecosystem thrive.

✏️Through our head-start program, we raise young tortoises for two years before releasing them into the wild—giving them a better chance to survive and grow strong.

🌎Want to be part of the action? Visitors can stop by our aquarium to see a gopher tortoise in person! You can also contribute to our community art project—color a hexagon and help us build a giant gopher tortoise mural!